Woody Pitkat easily could have been resigned to a lesser fate when he had to restart in 15th place after being involved in an incident on the first lap of Thursday's Sunoco Modified feature at Thompson International Speedway.

Instead, Pitkat displayed the competitive fire that has landed him in Victory Lane numerous times over the years. It didn't hurt that luck was also on his side.

Pitkat, of Stafford Springs, Conn., jumped from third to first when leaders Ryan Preece and Keith Rocco crashed on lap 24 of 30, and Pitkat hung on to secure the victory and take the Sunoco Modified points lead.

Preece and Rocco were locked up in a thrilling battle for the lead, with Rocco all over Preece's rear bumper, when calamity overcame the duo. Stan Mertz' engine suddenly blew in turn two, causing Preece to slam into him hard, and Rocco had nowhere to go and was collected.

"I just saw them spinning out in one and two, and they said I was the leader," Pitkat said. "I thought, 'OK, I finally have some luck on my side.'"

Suddenly, Pitkat's night had gone from bleak to boffo. It was a far cry from the first lap, when Pitkat, Kerry Malone and Ludlow's John Catania got tangled racing with polesitter Paul Newcomb.

Pitkat and Catania both spun into the infield. Although Pitkat's car was not severely damaged, officials ruled he stopped, and thus was considered involved in the caution. Instead of regaining his starting position, he had to come from the back.

Once Pitkat had the lead, he held off a late challenge from Dennis Perry. Belchertown's Nick Boivin finished fourth.

"I just felt that, since the race never started, that I should have been third on the restart," Pitkat said. "But they see it their way, and I see it mine."

Patience was key for Bill McNeil, of Preston, Conn. He spent most of the 20-lap Limited Sportsman race on the back bumper of polesitter Kevin Mason before finally taking the lead on the backstretch with 1 1/2 laps to go.

"I think we could have had him earlier, but he wasn't really giving us much room," McNeil said. "He's a good friend. We've been racing for years, and I knew he'd be tough."

Defending champion Cam McDermott, of Scituate, R.I., cruised to the victory in the 20-lap Lite Modified feature. Joe Boivin joined his brother with a fourth-place showing.

"We want to be the one that everyone's chasing, and we strive to get to that point," McDermott said.

Another brother act - Joe and Chad Baxter, of Pascoag, R.I. - finished first and second in the 15-lap Monster Mini Stock race.

"It's been up and down, but mostly up," Joe Baxter said of his season, in which he has two wins.

Glenn Boss, of Danielson, Conn., led the final 20 laps en route to his third win of the season in the 25-lap Late Model feature.

"Everything clicked," Boss said. "This car was a rocket ship."

Bobby Santos III won the pole for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Budweiser 150, which began just after 9 p.m. Thursday.